West Burleigh Store

The 1935 West Burleigh Store, built by Alf Fletcher, is a rare example of a general store from an era when tourism was in its infancy on the Gold Coast. Spurred on by the provision of better roads and bridges between Brisbane and the coast, this store was able to provide the necessities of life to travellers and campers. It was a typical country store supplying foodstuffs, haberdashery, Manchester, clothes, boots, hardware, stock-feed and building materials. The large plate-glass windows and recessed entrance, designed to maximise display space is typical of inter-war shops. The Fletcher family lived on the upper level of the building, and there were petrol bowsers on the road frontage under the verandah. The West Burleigh post office and telephone exchange was also conducted from the store. The post office was a smaller building attached to the northern side of the shop. It is believed that it was removed when the current shopping and office complex was built around the shop in the 1980s. Fletcher managed the shop until his death in 1963. His widow continued to operate the business until the early 1970s. The store is now a bustling cafe and antique shop.